Beginning A Lifetime
by uniquely fresh
Summary: Cristina and Owen try to begin their lifetime together. *Disclaimer* I own nothing, all characters are property of Shonda Rhimes and ABC.
1. Chapter 1

"I want to be around 40 years from now", Owen said with a smile on his face. He looked at Cristina still smiling, but inside he was afraid to see an alarmed face; but to his relief was greeted with an affectionate smile. Cristina had been in profound thought before Owen made that declaration. She never imagined having to give up medicine, but tonight, Dr. Campbell changed that momentarily. She often fell asleep effortlessly, knowing that when she awoke medicine would still be there waiting for her. It scared her a little, put frightening worry in her mind, but it was all put to rest when Owen made his 40 year declaration. She would have him, a wonderful man who accepted her, flaws and all, and the best part; he wanted a lifetime with her.

They had a few more drinks, talked about everything but medicine, and even played a couple of games of competitive darts. Cristina did not want to interrupt the good time they were having but she had to be at the hospital early. Dr. Dixon was returning to Seattle Grace Hospital to perform a heterotpic heart transplant and specifically requested that Dr. Yang assist her.

"I hate to end the festivities but I've got an early surgery tomorrow with Dixon", Cristina said.

"It's fine, let's get you home then." Owen proceeded to help Cristina with her jacket, and walked hand in hand out of Joe's bar.

They made the short trip down the street to Cristina's apartment. When they reached the stoop Owen released his hand from Cristina's, grabbed her waist and brought her close. They looked in each others eyes, smiled and kissed tenderly, but that did not last long, for it progressively became passionate. Cristina slipped her tongue into Owen's mouth, and started to massage his tongue, he was not expecting that, but could not resist playfully sliding her tongue back in her mouth and returning the favor. Cristina's hands began exploring Owen's masculine built. All the kissing and touching sent good vibrations all through his body, he was becoming aroused, but pulled away before he started to noticeably rise.

"Any more of that and you'll definitely miss your surgery tomorrow morning", Owen said catching his breath. This pleased Cristina and it showed on her face.

"Awe and I was looking forward to spending a night with Dr. Good times" Cristina said playfully.

Owen lightly chuckled, "Good night Cristina." "Good night Owen." They shared one more kiss, and Owen watched as she walked through the door before heading home himself.

Cristina typically fell asleep with ease but tonight was different, she found herself lying awake, in deep thought about Owen. She remembered vowing not to get involved with another attending, and the only thought of marriage would involve only her beloved cardio. Cristina smiled; Owen Hunt sure did change that, especially with tonight's declaration. Dishonoring a vow never felt so good. She fell asleep replaying her moments with Owen over the past six months, and thinking how great it would be to share a lifetime with him.

* * *

The next day Cristina walked into the hospital eager for the day ahead. She had surgery with Dr. Dixon, and best of all Owen. She made her way to the resident's locker room with a smile on her face. This surprised her fellow residents because of all people Cristina Yang was not a smiley, bubbly person. Meredith looked her up and down, trying to figure out why she was so happy, it clearly showed on her face.

"Why are we so cheerful this morning?" Cristina snapped out of her day dreaming.

"What? Nothing, I'm just excited for my surgery today." Meredith raised her eye brows.

"Sure, whatever you say. Anyway I gotta run, see you at lunch."

Cristina changed into her scrubs and before leaving she did something she had never done before. She stopped by the mirror, put her hair in a pony tail, and made sure the back of her neck was clearly visible.

At the nurse's station Cristina quickly got rid of her inters.

"3, you're with Sloan. 2 scut! 4.2. Dr. Shepherd needs an intern. GO, and you better not suck and make me look bad!" Just as Cristina was done giving out her assignments to her interns Owen appeared right beside her, chuckling.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing, you just have such a way with words." Cristina gave him a teasingly mean look. He then mustered up the strength to ask. "So, I was wondering if you'd like to get together tonight." This surprised Cristina.

"Huh?"

"Did you really not hear me or do you enjoy watching me blush nervously while I repeat myself?" Cristina laughed.

"I think it's cute when you blush, and yes, I would love too." Owen let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

"Great, hope 7 is good for you. I'll meet you out front that way I won't be late." Owen said with a smirk.

"Seven is fine, I'll see you later."

Cristina walked off towards the cardio wing and Owen, once again could not keep his eyes off her, especially the nape of her neck. As she disappeared around the corner he turned in the opposite direction and headed off to the ER.

* * *

Cristina met up with Meredith for lunch. They sat at their usual table in the cafeteria, eating salads, and before the rest of the gang joined Meredith hurried to ask her questions she could not this morning. "So what's with the entire bubbly ness?" Cristina rolled her eyes.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Meredith refused to believe it, and pressed more.

"Cristina, we're not bright and shiny people, spill it. What's gotten you so happy?" Cristina swallowed the leafy greens in her mouth and decided to spill.

"It's Owen…" Meredith eyes widened. "You're finally having dirty sex with him!" Cristina laughed.

"No. It's different with him Mer. I don't know how to explain it, but tonight we're going to hang out." Meredith put down her fork.

"Oh so you're having dirty sex with him tonight?" She popped a tomato in her mouth, eager to know. "You better start spilling!" Cristina shook her head.

"Another time" she said, as she spotted Alex, Izzie and George coming to join the table. "I'll call you tonight." Cristina walked off to empty her tray and left the cafeteria to read Ellis's diary, and do notes on her surgery today with Dr. Dixon.

* * *

It was 6:40 when Cristina checked her watch, and was ready to see Owen. She decided to head to the locker room early to get changed, and made her way out front. Cristina was 5 minutes early, and Owen was already there waiting for her. Owen placed his hand on Cristina's lower back, leading her to the exit.

"Let's get on our way." Cristina was making her way across the street assuming they were going to Joe's again, but Owen quickly stopped and detoured her to his car.

"Wait, so where are we going?" Cristina looked confused while pointing and Joes. "Is this a date?" Cristina asked curiously, wondering what he had planned.

"You'll see, just wait."


	2. Chapter 2

Owen drove out of the hospital's parking lot, and made his way onto the nearest highway; heading in the direction of downtown Seattle. Even though Cristina lived here for a few years, she has yet to see what this city had to offer. Once they were steady on the highway Owen grabbed Cristina's hand from her lap and intertwined their fingers. This was the first time Cristina felt comfortable during a date, no nerves, and no butterflies, simply excited for what was to come.

"So where are we headed, come on give me a clue, and don't say downtown."

"Cristina, don't make me spoil it. Just trust me, you'll like it" hearing that made Cristina think of their moment on the vent. She did like it, and it only made her more excited to reach their destination.

It was quite a lengthy drive but they finally exited the highway, and Cristina searched for signs to get an idea of where they were headed. _"Pioneer Square?" _As Owen drove through a couple of street lights, Cristina noticed that the buildings they were now surrounded by were very Victorian Romanesque. She sat up straight in her seat, staring out of the window, fascinated by the architectures. Owen was pleased to see this, and felt he planned well. He slowed down so she could take it all in.

"Wow, this is amazing. I've never seen anything like this." Cristina looked exhilarated. "It's so beautiful here." Lost in the entire city's beauty Cristina then remembered how informal she was dressed.

"I wish you would have told me we were coming to such a nice place, I would have worn something more fitting." Owen shook his head.

"That's not something you have to worry about, you fit right in" Cristina looked confused, she was only wearing jeans, and a simple blouse.

"How so?"

Owen found a parking space, turned off the car and faced Cristina. "Well, you are beautiful yourself." He then planted a soft kiss on her cheek. "Now let's get something to eat."

They walked the streets of Pioneer Square, entranced by the scenery. A few blocks later, they found their way into a charming Italian restaurant. The hostess seated them at a table with a view over looking Elliot Bay. The setting inside was very romantic and intimate. Cristina, who was typically impressed only by medicine, found this entire adventure breath taking. Owen was really making her appreciate moving forward into a relationship.

* * *

Cristina and Owen's time spent in the restaurant was exquisite. They particularly enjoyed the wide selection of wines. There were even moments where they fed each other food. The conversation was light, but their expressions and eye contact they were making would suggest otherwise. Upon finishing dinner, Owen paid the bill, and they made their way outside.

"The food and wine was fantastic" Cristina said as she rubbed her stomach. "How did you find this place?"

"It's been here for years. I last came here for my parent's anniversary." Cristina regretted asking that question, she knew his parents; especially his mother was a sensitive subject.

Owen walked over to a near by railing, watching the ferryboats come and go. Cristina joined him, and entangled their arms together. _"I've never been on a ferryboat." Cristina thought. _Owen must have read Cristina's mind, because he broke the silence.

"When I was a little boy, my mother used to take me and my younger sister for rides on the ferryboats every day. It became routine, like we would do it forever." Owen took a deep breath, and Cristina placed her hand on his back.

"Owen have you told your…" before she could finish Owen interjected.

"No, I haven't told my mother I'm back." He put his head down. "I know it's something that has to be done, but I'm just not ready, I need a little time." Cristina understood.

"Well, whenever you are ready, I'm here for you. In any way you need me." Owen's eyes began to water, as he embraced Cristina. She stroked his hair a few times before situated her arms around his neck and broad shoulders; she held him tight. When they finally released each other Owen positioned his hand on the back Cristina's head, and planted a kiss on her forehead. _"She is definitely the one" he thought. _They made their way to his car and headed home.

* * *

Cristina was surprised when Owen passed her apartment, and continued driving down the street. _"There's more?" she thought. _Rather than question him, she just relaxed into her seat.

They arrived at a very modern looking building, twenty minutes from the hospital. Owen parked, opened Cristina's door, and led the way to the elevator and pressed 4. The elevator doors opened and Cristina followed Owen to the end of the hallway, to apartment # 505. Owen unlocked the door to an apartment that was pitching black. Cristina was expecting Owen to turn on some lights but he didn't. He simply grabbed her had and continued deeper into the apartment. Feeling completely blinded she heard a door open, and finally light. He led her to the bathroom. Cristina smiled, slightly embarrassed.

"How did you know?"

"I noticed you were dancing in the elevator," Owen laughed.

Cristina sat on the toilet in a hurry and relieved herself. When she was finished, she smiled at the fact he too did not put the toilet paper on the holder. While she was washing her hands she thought she heard popping. _"What on earth is that?" she thought. _She dried her hands, tied up her hair, and made her out of the bathroom. She kept her hands to the walls, trying to avoid falling. When finally felt she was out of the hallway, she noticed a small glimmer of light peeking around the corner, she followed it. Cristina found Owen in a room lit with candles surrounding a mountain of pillows.

"I thought we could enjoy dessert over a movie." Owen said while holding a bowl of popcorn with crumbled chocolate sprinkled on top. Cristina was a sucker for chocolate.

"You're good." Owen gave a smile that said I know, as he popped a DVD into the player.

Cristina took off her jacket, and joined Owen on the very plush pillows. He handed her the popcorn, slipped off her boots, and began to massage her feet. She fed him popcorn as he done so. As the movie was about to start, Owen repositioned himself, and motioned to Cristina to come lay beside him and spoon. Having his arms wrapped around her made her experience a sense of security she never felt before.

Twenty minutes of the movie had elapsed and Cristina turned to face Owen. She placed one hand on his cheek, gazed into his piercing blue eyes, and kissed him passionately. It did not take long for their tongues to pick up where they left off last time. Owen was now on top of Cristina, one hand placed behind her neck, and the other sliding up her thigh. Feeling his hands travel on her body made her moist. He reached her waist line and unbuttoned her pants, and proceeding to go underneath her shirt. She sat up slightly so he could remove it for her, and Cristina took this opportunity to remove his as well. Owen's masculine body turned Cristina on even more, she yearned to the rest. Just as Cristina was undoing Owen's pants, revealing his massive erection, his pager went off. Cristina threw up her hands, and let herself fall back on the pillows trying to catch her breath. Owen bowed his head, _"Perfect fucking timing" he thought_.

"It's 911, emergency. I have to go." Owen sighed in frustration.

They dressed quickly before they go back in the swing of things.

* * *

Once again they were standing on Cristina's stoop, they shared a quick, but tender kiss, and said goodbye. This time Cristina watched Owen disappear into the hospital before heading inside. She made her way quietly into her room, trying not to wake Callie. Lord knows if she did, Callie would want major details about her night. Details she still wanted to keep to herself and swoon over.

By the time Cristina laid in bed her sexual frustration was gone. She reminisced about her night with Owen and realized that today's events with him were better than any sex she ever had. This made her eager for their next opportunity to make love; she knew it would take her to new heights. Cristina fell asleep dreaming of Owen.

* * *

Owen changed into his scrubs promptly, and received information about his emergency page from a senior nurse in front of the OR board.

"32 year old male, with multiple stab wounds to the chest and abdomen. They just wheeled him to OR 2." Owen nodded. "Tell them I'm scrubbing in now." The nurse ran off to inform them.

Just as Owen was about to rush off to the OR he noticed a slot on the board that read V.I.P patient. This V.I.P patient was schedule for heart surgery; a valve replacement, and Cristina Yang was the resident chosen to assist. He smiled thinking of how pleased Cristina would be, and even more excited about the attending taking point, the famous Dr. Colin Marlow.


	3. Chapter 3

When Cristina entered the resident's locker room she thought it was empty, to her surprise she found Meredith already changed, propped up against her locker reading. Meredith peeked out from behind her mother's journal, and eyed Cristina. "You never called," she said with an annoyed look on her face. Meredith was beginning to feel the title of you're my person was becoming just that, a title. She could definitely tell that something serious was happening between Cristina and Owen, and she wanted details. Cristina gave Meredith an apologetic look.

"Sorry, it was really late and I didn't want to hear your precious McDreamy nagging about how he didn't get his beauty sleep." Cristina began changing into her scrubs. "Anyway, Mer… I am seriously falling for Owen." Meredith seemed slightly surprised.

"So you're in love with him?" Cristina sat beside her. "I think so."

"Have you guys used the loaded L word yet?"

"No, but the other night he basically told me he wanted to be around 40 years from now."

"Whoa, that's a lifetime!"

Cristina smiled. "I know, and funny thing is, I'm not scared, I'm actually looking forward to it."

Meredith closed her mother's journal and put her arm around Cristina. "Wow, so we're really growing up." Cristina just rolled her eyes. "I'm happy for you Cristina that you're moving on, I'm glad you're over Burke." The last statement made Cristina laugh.

"Pshh! After last night the thought of Burke's existence has completely perished!"

"Ah so the dirty sex with Owen is that good?"

Cristina slipped on her shoes and stood up, "Mer, shut up."

Meredith put her mother's journal in her locker, and faced Cristina, "So where did he take you?"

"Downtown," Cristina paused remembering the buildings, "to Pioneer Square, we had dinner, enjoyed the scenery, and went to his place. It was just…" Cristina let out a deep breath.

Remember the last time Cristina was in another man's house she asked, "Did you go through his things?"

Cristina said with a smile on her face, a smile Meredith had never seen. "Mer, it's not like Burke. First, Owen is a real man, and second he makes me want to have that happy ending, with him I feel like I have something great to look forward to. This doesn't feel forced, just natural."

"That was pretty reflective, especially for us."

"Damn it, I know."

"See, that's what I have with Derek." Meredith said proudly.

Cristina laughed, "Did you hear the part where I said Owen was a _real_ man?"

"I see being in love has not completely changed the Cristina we all know and love"

Cristina left the locker room and walked down the corridor. She was on her way to check the OR board to see whose service she would be on today, but stopped when she saw Owen. He handed the nurse a patient's chart and began to stretch, he was clearly exhausted.

"You look like you need a good massage." Cristina said as she approached.

He smiled, "Are you offering?" looking at her tiny, fragile hands he teased, "You sure those little things can do any damage with a massage?" Cristina raised her eye brows.

"You'd be surprised at what these hands can do." She said, as she ran her hand down his chest to the strings of his scrub pants. Owen would have continued to flirt but saw Bailey heading their way so he straightened up. Cristina took a step back and quickly put her hand into the pockets of her coat. As Bailey passed she yelled out to Cristina.

"Yang meet me in the conference room in five minutes." Cristina eyes widened, worried that Dr. Bailey saw her and Owen flirting, but they returned to normal size when she heard her say, "We need to go over some things about the V.I.P patient you're on today."

"Okay I'll be right there" Cristina yelled back, as Dr. Bailey disappeared around the corner.

She returned her attention to Owen. "How was this morning's 911 emergency?"

"It's a mess. 32 year old male, with multiple stab wounds, had to do deep damage control surgery. He's in the ICU now. Hopefully he'll be back in the OR for definitive repair." Owen stretched again, "Just thought I would try and get some sleep before having to go back in there."

"Yeah, you definitely should." Cristina began to tie up her hair, "besides I have to get to my V.I.P patient." She said with a smirk.

"Yeah, I saw that last night on the OR board. I'm not sure who the special patient is but you'll be happy to hear the famous heart surgeon Dr. Colin Marlow is taking point on the surgery." Cristina froze. "I bet he has loads to teach." Before he could say anymore a nurse came running down the hall and informed him his patient was coding. He took off in a hurry, leaving Cristina in her stunned state.

"Yang!" Bailey yelled with force. Cristina slightly staggered. "Umm… yes?"

"V.I.P. patient, conference room, now!" Cristina hop skipped and jumped at Bailey's orders.

Bailey and Cristina entered the conference room to find Chief Webber, Marlowe, and the chairman of the hospital board; Larry. He was the V.I.P. patient for the valve replacement. They took seats beside each other and listened to what the Chief was saying. It was the typical speech from the last time penis fish guy was here, so Cristina tuned out the Chief's voice and drifted away in her thoughts about Owen. She knew once her friends found out Marlow was here, word would spread like wildfire of his last visit; him having his hands all over her ass. It would only be a matter of time before this news reached Owen. He would not only learn of her former romance with Marlow, but it would eventually lead to her ex-fiancé Burke. These thoughts frustrated Cristina, she was not sure she was ready to give Owen these details of her past. However, remembering the moments Owen shared with her, she knew he deserved to know, and to know now. Cristina decided after this meeting was wrapped up, she would track Owen down, and spill everything out before he heard it through the grapevine. When Cristina emerged from her thoughts, the meeting was over. The Chief, Bailey, and chairman of the hospital board left the room. As Cristina got up to leave and find Owen, Marlow began to speak.

"I'm sorry to hear that the wedding did not follow through." He made his way across the table and leaned against the doorway.

"Oh don't pretend to sorry," Cristina said as she placed her hands on her hips, "deep down you're jumping with joy." Marlow laughed and nonchalantly made his way in front of Cristina.

"You're right." He said, placing his index finger on her collar bone, "I always knew the Cristina Yang I fell in love with was still in there," and made his way down towards her heart. She swatted his hand away in disgust. "Don't even think about trying to feel me up again, and I am not that gooey eyed student infatuated with her professor. That Cristina is long gone." Just as Cristina finished her sentence, she saw a familiar figure from the corner of her eye. It was Owen; he had seen Marlow's passionate gaze he gave Cristina, but was too far down the hall to hear the exact words of their conversation. Owen witnessed Marlowe's finger touch Cristina, which sent waves of jealousy through his body. He was strongly tempted to go punch him his face in, but refrained when he saw the chief returning to the conference room.

"Dr. Marlow, Larry would like a word with you." The chief then directed his attention to Cristina. "Yang, please go book OR 1." Cristina nodded, but walked in Owen's direction. When he noticed she was coming his way, he turned and walked away. Cristina sped up, and caught his arm.

"Hey…" she tried to explain, but Owen cut her off. "I've got to get back in the OR, my guy cannot wait, sorry," and he walked toward the scrub room. Owen was visibly taken back by what he saw, and Cristina knew it. "Wait Owen. What you saw…" He stopped and faced her.

"I'm working, I'm busy, and _clearly you are too_." He said in an annoyed tone. _"Great, just fucking great," she thought. _On her way to book the OR she ran into Meredith, and Izzie. She was not up for any conversation, and Meredith instantly saw that, she said nothing, but gave an understanding look. Izzie however could not hold back.

"Sooo, the pig murderer try to kill Marlow yet for touching your ass?" Cristina glared at her.

"Shouldn't you be in the clinic sticking band aids on people?" Izzie simply laughed.

"Breathe Cristina, you can get through this." Meredith said before joining Izzie in the clinic.

* * *

Cristina booked the OR, and met Marlow in the scrub room. All she could think of was getting in and out of the surgery as quickly as possible. She needed to find Owen and explain everything to him. Before she entered the OR, she breathed deep, and tried to focus on the task ahead. _ "I can do this" she told herself, "focus on the medicine, I can get through this." _She got her gown and gloves on, and joined Marlow on the opposite side of the operating table.

"10 blade." Marlow instructed to the scrub nurse. Cristina watched as he made a six to eight inch incision at the center of Larry's chest. He cracked his chest open and proceeded to put him on bypass by placing a special tube in the right atrium of his heart. Once that was finished, he made another incision, this time in the aorta. Watching this started to soothe Cristina's distraught mood, heart surgery invigorated her. It was when Marlow began to remove the damaged valve that broke the moment. With superiority in his eyes, he broke the silence, "I find it hard to believe that Preston Burke is deserving of the Haper Avery award, if he was, then the chairman of the medical board would have requested him to perform his surgery." Cristina refused to comment, but it did hit a nerve, bringing back the painful memory of her and Burke's tremor gate incident. He was not giving up on cracking Cristina's silence. Marlow continued to make malicious remarks all through surgery. He touched on everything from her poor decision in men, aside form him of course, to Burke, and how she allowed him to turn her into one of the weak and undirected she once talked down on. At one point Cristina wanted to shove the suction instrument down his throat. For the first time, Cristina dreaded being in the OR. Nearing the end of the surgery, Marlow asked Cristina if she would like to do the honors of sewing the new valve in place. She declined. Cristina did not want to share another moment with this man. She left the OR before he closed up Larry's chest. While scrubbing out, her mind could only contain one thought, and it was Owen. She felt he deserved to know her before in order for them to completely start their lifetime together. She was annoyed that it took Colin Marlow to show up.

* * *

"You can do this." Cristina said aloud. She had paged Owen and was pacing back and forth in the same on call room where he fell asleep on her. With each minute that passed Cristina became more nervous about what exactly she was going to say, and how he would take it. Once again she tuned her surroundings out, and was lost in her head.

_Oh god, Oh god. What is he going to say when he hears that my last two significant relationships were with my superiors? I know exactly what he's going to think, I was sleeping to get ahead. He's going to see me as a social climber. The one guy who seems to fit into my life so well is going to be driven away once I spill all this on him. Oh not to mention the pregnancy, ectopic one at that, the loss of my fallopian tube. Ugh, once he finds out I was once engaged too, he's going to thing I'm a total hypocrite for being upset by the fact he did not tell me about Beth._

Owen walked into the on call room to find Cristina with her first clenched, eyes shut tight and mumbling to herself. "Cristina" he said soft. She did not respond. "Cristina!" he yelled loudly. The sound of his booming voice made her jolt. She turned to face him, and thought it's now or never. "Umm… I don't really know how to start, so bare with me. I want to tell you all of this before you hear it from someone else; I think you deserve that, especially after you've shared so much with me."

Cristina breathed deep.

"I know you saw Colin Marlow place his hand on me, and clearly it upset you but you should know that there is history between us. You see he was my professor at Stanford, and we became romantically involved for 3 years." She paused to take a look at Owen. He just stood there with his arms crossed, an expression on his face she had never seen nor could describe. It worried her, but she continued anyway. "When school was ending, I broke things off with him, and came here to Seattle and began my internship. Upon arriving here I got involved with an attending, Preston Burke; he was the head of cardiology. Our relationship progressed very fast, we started sleeping together, and then I got pregnant." Cristina paused again, this time when she looked at Owen, she recognized this expression; it was a state of shock. She looked away and continued. "Before I got a chance to tell him I was pregnant he broke up with me. A few days later I suffered an ectopic pregnancy, lost a fallopian tube, and those events brought us back together. We moved in together, got engaged, and made it to the wedding chapel." Cristina needed another breather before continuing, her voice now became shaky. "On the day of our wedding, he broke up with me, and left. He _waited _until the day of our wedding to tell me it was all over. He pushed me into moving in together, getting engaged, all the stupid wedding planning, and calls everything off." This time Cristina paused to look Owen straight in his eyes. She went on to tell him about the tremor gate fiasco, how she became his hand in surgery, and in the end was given no credit for it. "My name should be in that article." Tears filled Cristina's eyes. "That's it, that's my before."

Owen was still trying to process everything Cristina had said when she looked for him to respond. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Cristina felt a knot form in her stomach and throat from Owen's silence. She was expecting him to flip out or judge her, anything but silence. Cristina sat on the bed, and watched as Owen simply turned around and left the room. Finally she allowed her tears fall.

* * *

_**I am not very pleased with this chapter. After revising it many times, I finally gave up and I'm publishing as is. Apologies if this chapter is all over the place. =/  
**_


	4. Chapter 4

Cristina backed into the corner of the bed bringing her knees to her chest, and buried her face in arms. She lifted her head briefly to check twice that Owen's reaction was him leaving the room, before hiding her face again. If she hadn't been on call tonight, she would have gone to Meredith's place and lay on her bathroom floor. In Cristina's mind this was equivalent to an Izzie Denny reaction. Tears were now coming faster from Cristina's eyes. The one person she need, and wanted was Owen, but he left. She began thinking how Burke like that was, and became more upset. Cristina could not take it anymore; she decided that she was going to page Meredith to cover for her tonight. She needed to get out of this hospital. Just as she was reaching for the door it swung open. It was Owen. Cristina was taken back; she did not expect Owen to return at all.

She tried to speak softly, but her words came out shaky "I thought…"

Owen cut her off. "You thought what? That you scared me off? Not a chance." Cristina felt a sense of relief hearing that. Her tears stopped, the knot in her stomach disappeared, and the tightening in her chest relaxed. Him coming back told her how un-Burke like he really was.

"I'm sorry I just walked out without saying anything, but after hearing everything I had to go get a few things." Cristina became confused. _"Get what?" she thought. _

"Cristina I appreciate what you shared with me tonight. Hearing the story of your before has really changed some things, especially the way I see you." This sent a tiny rush of panic through Cristina's body. _"Oh great, here comes the part where I'm a social climber," she thought._ Owen came closer to Cristina, wiped the tears from her cheeks, and positioned his hands around her. He looked her straight in her eyes and continued.

"First, you're a lot stronger than I had originally thought. I am amazed at how far you've come. You went through a traumatic ectopic pregnancy, a forced engagement, with a coward I might add, and left at the alter in the worst way, yet you still manage to be this remarkable person. I admire you more for it, and you even inspire me." He released his hands from her and took a second to reflect. He thought if Cristina managed to go through all that and still be this great person, then surely he would be able to face the demons ahead in his own path, and come out just fine.

Owen then reached in the pockets of his lab coat. "Second, this is the reason why I left the room." He pulled out the newspaper article of Burke that had been pinned to the bulletin board. "Let's burn this misprint." Cristina smiled as Owen handed it to her; he pulled out a box of matches, lit one, and held the fire to it. They both watched as it slowly burned away. Cristina let it fall to the ground before the fire reached her fingers. Owen stepped on it, and wiped the smut away with his shoe. He then reached into his other pocket revealing a thin, round specimen container. Cristina looked at him a little crazy. He handed it to her and she examined it. She burst out laughing; it was his version of the Harper Avery Award. Owen had drawn a picture of Cristina with a marker, and inscribed on it: _Cristina Yang; one badass surgeon, winner of the prestigious Harper Avery Award. _ "I love it," she said as she embraced it close to her.

"Since Marlow is here, now's your chance to let me know if you want me to kick his ass." Cristina laughed, one of the many things he loved about her. "He's not worth it." she said as she walked up to Owen, "but this is." and kissed him fervently.

After a long passionate make out session, they made their way to the bed to finally get some rest. It has been an exhausting day, not only physically, but emotionally too. Cristina rested her head on Owen's chest and he wrapped one arm around her. Feeling secure in each other's arms, they fell asleep effortlessly, dreaming of their lifetime together.

* * *

By the time Cristina woke up Owen was already gone. He left a note beside her that read: _I had an incoming trauma. Meet me for lunch later? _"_Of course," _she said in her head. She grabbed Owen's version of the Harper Avery, cherishing it. Before she could get lost in her thoughts her pager started buzzing, it was the Chief. _"Must be about penis fish guy." _ She put on her lab coat, placed her _award_ inside her pocket, and went off to find Dr. Chief Webber.

Cristina made her way across the bridge to his office. Patricia, his secretary said to go right in, he was expecting her. She entered, and found the Chief sitting behind his desk. "Sir, you paged?"

"Ah Yang, there you are," he said as he shuffled away some papers, "have a seat."

"If it's about Larry, last I checked he was recovering just fine."

The Chief nodded, "That's good to hear, but that's not why I wanted to see. It's about you."

"Uhh…. Okay." Cristina instantly started replaying yesterday in her head, wondering if she had done anything wrong, and then something hit her. _"Does the Chief know about me and Owen? Did he see us flirting?" _Panic entered her eyes as she sat down, and gulped as the Chief proceeded.


	5. Chapter 5

"Dr. Yang, I know with you being a surgical junkie, it was difficult to be taken out of the running for the solo surgery." Cristina relaxed a little easier, but she did not want to be reminded of how she was robbed from that.

"Yes sir," she simply said.

"The minute you saw that the interns were practicing medicine on each other you should have come to me directly, but you didn't. For that reason that's why punishment was necessary." Cristina merely sighed. "However, in hindsight you were not the only resident to blame for the intern's actions. Your fellow class _also_ failed to teach and supervise." Cristina knew that, but it was so good to hear someone else acknowledge it.

"I was beginning to think I was the only one who saw that, thank you for noticing." The Chief nodded.

"I was very impressed with the way you handled your punishment Yang. You showed great maturity, especially with your choice in not picking your best friend for the solo surgery. For that I want to reward you." Cristina raised her eyebrows. "Bailey has an appendectomy scheduled tomorrow morning, it's yours. With every attending picking you, a solo surgery is well deserved it."

Suddenly Cristina's entire body felt a rush of shock and excitement at the same time.

"Oh my God! Thank you sir, Thank you!" Cristina felt as though she won the lottery, and could not wait to tell Owen and Meredith.

"I know you're going to gloat to your friends the minute you leave my office, but I'll announce it later anyway." Cristina chuckled lightly, he knew her too well.

"Alright Yang, run along, and make sure to stop at the skills lab and get some practice on Stan. You'll want to be prepared for tomorrow."

"Of course sir, thank you sir!"

Cristina walked out of the Chief's office with pep in her step, she felt like a total badass. _"My very first solo surgery. Yes!" _She walked off to find any of peers to start the gloating.

Before she could begin her search ran into Dr. Bailey, and thought I guess I'll start here.

"Dr. Bailey I'm sure you know I'm going to be performing your appendectomy tomorrow morning." She said with a very cheesy smile.

Bailey looked up from the pile of letters of recommendation for her peds fellowship. "Yes I heard Yang; you get to be a mini surgeon for a day. You can have it, I'm happy to be going far away from general surgery. Oh and you're in the clinic today, Izzie is working with the interns."

"The clinic? Can't you give it to Karev, he is her boyfriend." Bailey raised her eyebrows.

"Last time I checked I was your Chief resident, and you do what I tell you. Clinic, GO!" Bailed yelled, and Cristina went scurrying off to the clinic. _"Eh, I guess I'll save my gloating for lunch."_

The clinic was filled with the usual patients; the kind that bored Cristina to death. Most patients were there for flu shots, heartburn, dermatitis, and colds. She longed for someone to walk through the clinic doors that involved paging an attending and booking them for surgery, but no cases like that came. Even though she was dissatisfied to be in the clinic today, she kept her mind set on tomorrow morning, and her solo surgery.

* * *

Meanwhile, Owen was down in the ER with the kind of blood and guts Cristina longed to be around. The ER was packed, overflowing with patients. There had been a catastrophic car crash, patients with mangled and broken bones, contusions to head, and those were just visible injuries. With all the patient surgeries Owen knew he would have to work through his lunch. He scanned the room hoping that Cristina would be paged to the ER, but only her fellow residents were. He took a moment to think how jealous Cristina would be at not getting a chance to assist and scrub in one of these surgeries. Owen did his best too quickly and efficiently asses the patients, but before he knew it lunch had come, and knew Cristina would be making her way to the cafeteria.

Owen assessed the condition of the final patient, gave orders to book another OR, and went on his way to the scrub room. As he reached the door, he felt a familiar tiny hand touch his back.

It was Cristina. "Hey you ready for lunch? I have the most amazing news," she said with smile.

"I can't, there were multiple traumas that came in this morning. Looks like I'm going to have to work through lunch," Owen said apologetically. "But what's the amazing news?"

Before Cristina could answer, they both heard from afar the Chief announcing to everyone that she would perform her first solo surgery tomorrow, an appendectomy. Owen turned to Cristina.

"Congratulations Dr. Yang, well deserved."

"Thank you," she said with a huge smile that almost made her eyes disappear.

"I'm sure you'll want to celebrate with your friends after work, but if it's not too late, maybe you'll want to stop by my apartment, and we can have our own celebration."

"Sounds like a plan," she said with a grin.

"Great. How does 9 sound?"

"I'll be there," she said.

They parted ways; Owen headed to the OR, and Cristina off to have lunch.

* * *

Cristina walked into the cafeteria elated, she was so ecstatic about her solo surgery she strutted her way the table where her friends were sitting. She placed her tray down, sat slowly while eyeing each of them with an insanely cheesy grin.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah Yang. We heard about your solo surgery, Chief is just giving you pity. I should be given another solo surgery" Alex said with a hint of jealousy in his eyes. "I'm experienced now."

"Oh shove it evil spawn, all the attendings picked _me," _Cristina retorted.

"Eh, whatever, at least I got some saw action," Alex said with a smirk.

"I think I'll choose you to scrub in with me, so you can see how to properly rock a solo surgery!"

Alex shoved a piece of sandwich in his mouth and nodded, "We'll see, don't choke Yang."

Meredith was surprised by Cristina's comment about choosing Alex to scrub in with her, for a moment she thought it was a joke, but clearly it was not. Rather than get upset, Meredith didn't take it personal, she needed to learn how to separate her professional life from her personal.

"Congratulations Cristina," she said with a smile, "I'll be placing bets in the OR gallery that you're gonna pull it off." Cristina nodded.

Izzie interrupted, "Yeah congrats, anyway, how is my clinic?"

"Boring as ever, but I'll gladly take it if it means good riddance to my interns for the day."

"The interns just need to be reminded how much fun medicine is, they're not losers you guys," Izzie said shaking her head.

"Okay enough talk about the interns, back to talk of my solo surgery," Cristina said in a playfully pompous way.

"I think we should celebrate at Joe's after work," Meredith said.

They all agreed, and continued with their lunch.

* * *

It was almost 7:30 and Cristina was on her way to Joe's. When she reached the lobby she saw Owen exiting the doors, she ran to catch up with him.

"Hey wait up," she yelled, and entangled their arms together.

"Hey, you on your way to Joe's?"

"Yeah, want to walk me over?" she asked, hoping he would say yes.

"Of course." They made the short trip across the street and shared a passionate kiss in Joe's alley way. When they finally pulled apart, Cristina thought about skipping out on her friends until Owen spoke.

"So I'll see you later then."

"After a kiss like that, definitely."

Owen watched as she walked in to the bar to meet her friends before heading to his apartment.

* * *

Thirty minutes had elapsed before Cristina wanted to leave the bar. The kiss her and Owen shared in the alley way had her all hot and bothered. She could not even focus on the conversation that was going on. All she could think about was Owen, and the things they would do to celebrate tonight. The vodka tonics she was ordering were just added fuel to her randy hormones. Cristina checked her watch; it was only 8 o' clock. _"Ugh, I can not wait another hour." _Finally she decided to leave._ "Owen won't might if I'm a little early." _She said her goodbyes, saying that she needed her rest for her surgery tomorrow, and caught a taxi to Owen's apartment.

Upon arriving in front of Owen's apartment building she paid the taxi fair, and made her way to the entrance. A young couple was on their way out; they were her ticket inside the complex. She reached the elevator, and pressed 4. During the elevator ride, she checked her posture, her clothes, and fixed her hair. As the elevator neared the 4th floor, Cristina could hear loud rock music playing. She finally exited the elevator, and headed towards Owen's apartment. The closer she got, the louder the music became. _"The neighbors must be having a party. Good now we can be loud." _When she finally reached Owen's door, she realized the music was coming from his apartment. She knocked, and waited, but no answer. Cristina tried once more before reaching for the door handle; it was unlocked, so she made her way inside.

"Owen," she said. _"Gosh is he having a party." _"Owen!" she yelled now, and still no answer.

She made her way deeper into his apartment, and found herself in his living room. Cristina's eyes became wide; the sight she saw shocked and surprised her.

* * *

_**a/n: Thank you all for your comments! :) However, with Grey's Anatomy returning soon, I'm afraid I won't be updating as fast, but I do hope to have 2 more chapters posted before Thursday.**_

* * *


	6. Chapter 6

Cristina never pegged Owen for the rock type. She always pictured him into country music; the whole cowboy hats and boots. This surprised Cristina, and what shocked her was that he was jamming out on an electric guitar wearing nothing but those olive green briefs that clanged to him nicely. After the initial shock, Cristina started to enjoy the view. His body was so masculine; tight and toned muscles, she was immediately turned on.

Owen had an intense look on his face, absorbed by the music and playing his guitar in tune. He spun around and without more ado stopped and froze up at the sight of Cristina. Owen was embarrassed; he turned bright red in his cheeks and neck as he set down his guitar and turned off the music.

"Umm…I was just….yeah I wasn't expecting you so soon," Owen said stuttering.

"Yeah I couldn't wait to come celebrate with you," she said with a hint of lust in her eyes.

Owen still could not find his words, he felt as though he humiliated himself. Cristina however ignored his bashfulness and continued on her mission of finally scratching her itch.

"How about we play a number together, as a duet," she said while removing her leather jacket.

Cristina removed her shoes, and started to undo her belt buckle.

"What are you doing Cristina?" Owen asked curiously.

"Well, duets typically have matching outfits, and by the looks of it I'm over dressed," Cristina said as she was now unzipping her jeans. Owen's coyness disappeared when her black lacy panties were revealed. He found himself hooked on Cristina undressing herself, and swallowed hard.

Owen continued to watch as she sat back on his beige sofa, unbuttoning her shirt. When she was finally in her panties and bra Owe could not contain himself any longer and made his way to Cristina.

"I'm only wearing briefs… so that means you have one more article of clothing to get rid of," Owen said mischievously.

"Want to help me out?"

Owen did not need to be asked twice, he reached around her back with one hand, and unhooked her bra. The sight of her small perky breast were inviting to him. Cristina lay back, and Owen followed. He kissed her stomach softly, and made his way up to one breast, kissing around her nipple. Before he took her nipple in his mouth he used the tip of his tongue to circle around it. The anticipation of his tongue was killing Cristina. Owen finally lowered his mouth on her nipple and began to suck slowly. With Cristina's breasts being small it allowed Owen to take much of her breast inside his mouth, sucking scrumptiously from base to tip.

As Owen made his way to her other breast he reached his hand below her waist and into her panties. His index and middle fingers found her clit, and he began to massage it slowly in a soft circular motion. Cristina let out moans in appreciation. He stopped momentarily to completely remove her panties and continued, this time in a slightly faster pace. Cristina's body temperature was rising rapidly, the way she was gripping his back and head let him know to keep going. He soon took a small break from her clit, and placed those same fingers insider her at a rhythmic pace. When he was done tending to her breasts, he moved his way up stopping to kiss her collar bone, her neck, and then to her soft warm lips.

"We should move to a bigger surface," Owen said suggestively, as he removed his fingers from inside her.

"Where's the bedroom?" Cristina asked in a hurry.

"Down the hall to the right," he said quickly.

They both got up from the couch, neither of them wanting to take their eyes off each other. Cristina caught sight of Owen's enormous erection. She playfully tugged at the waist band of his briefs, and held on to it as she led the way. When they reached the bedroom Cristina quickly removed his briefs. Owen pulled back the covers and lifted Cristina onto his bed, where he followed on top of her. He wasted no time, and slipped himself inside her. They both felt rushes of exhilaration, this was something they both wanted and needed. Owen took Cristina in ways she never imagined with each thrust throughout the night. Cristina came first and Owen followed, what happened tonight was invigorating for both of them.

* * *

Cristina woke up to the sun peeking through the blinds. She slightly lifted her head from Owen's chest to read the clock on the nightstand near by. It read 6 o' clock. Cristina's solo surgery was scheduled at 8am, but her shift started in an hour. She rested her head and began drawing hearts on Owen's chest with her finger tips. He awoke and grabbed Cristina's hand and kissed it before planting a soft kiss on her lips.

"I'm on in an hour," Cristina said as she sat up, "I've got to head to my apartment and shower."

"You could shower here, and we can drive to work together if you like," Owen said suggestively.

"I'll shower here, but I still have to stop by my apartment. I need clean clothes."

"Alright, well better start showering then," Owen said as pointed to the bathroom.

Cristina wrapped the sheet around her and made her to way to the bathroom to shower. When she finished she met up with Owen in his kitchen, which was quite modern and looked as though it had never been used. If Callie had not lived there, Cristina's would look exactly the same.

"Coffee to go," Owen said as he handed her a small thermos mug.

"Thanks," she said as she sipped her black coffee.

They made their way to the underground garage and drove to Cristina's apartment.

"You ready for your solo surgery today?" Owen asked with one eyebrow raised.

"Of course I am. I was born to do this. I'm going to show Karev how to rock a solo surgery." Cristina said with cockiness.

Owen laughed, "Well I'll do my best to be there watching from the OR gallery." Hearing that mad Cristina smile, deep down she wanted Owen to up there watching her pull off her solo surgery. Heck, if she had it her way he would be scrubbing in with her.

They reached her apartment, said their goodbyes, and shared a kiss. Cristina walked up the short stoop and ran into Callie on her way to their apartment.

Callie simply eyed Crisitna "Well I'm glad one of us is getting some….and don't even try to deny it either because you're glowing like you got some." Cristina could do nothing but laugh as she continued he way to apartment to get into some fresh clothes. She changed quickly and made the short walk to the hospital. Immediately she rushed to the skills lab to practice on Stan.

Meanwhile Owen was checking the OR board for any surgeries he was assigned to today. He wanted to make sure he would be able to watch Cristina's solo surgery today. However, being a trauma surgeon surgery seemed inevitable. He went off to the ER to see how his day would unravel; he prayed it would be slow. Before Owen could start assessing patients he was paged to the nurse's station near the lobby of the hospital. As he was nearing the lobby to find out what the page was about he caught sight of someone that made him freeze up in terror.


	7. Chapter 7

Owen felt each muscle in his body tense up. All the symptoms of a panic attack were rising. He was not ready to deal with what lay in front of him. The last time he had seen his younger sister was the night he met Cristina. For a moment he thought of turning around and hiding out in the nearest on call room, but he knew if he had any chance at moving forward he needed to get past this hurdle. Owen never imagined that seeing his family would become a stumbling block to triumph over, it pained him. Remembering Cristina and her story gave him the strength to walk up and confront his sister.

"Helen," Owen nearly whispered.

She turned to face her brother, "Owen, what the hell….you've been back all this time and didn't bother to tell you family! Beth called me… how could you treat her that way and worst of all how could you not tell mom?" Her words initially stung Owen's heart, but he quickly became annoyed that Beth would run and tell his family. The last thing he wanted was his family to hear he was back through a third party.

"Look I understand that you're upset but…"

"Upset? Upset does not even begin to describe how I feel," Helen said with anger in her eyes.

Owen shook his head, becoming frustrated that his sister kept cutting him off. Before she got another chance, he grabbed her arm and led her to the empty conference room nearby. He did not want his business aired out in front of the hospital staff.

"God damn it Helen, you're still the same. You ask questions and don't give anyone a chance to answer them," Owen said annoyed.

His sister simply glared at him, feeling that he had no right to be aggravated or upset.

"I wanted to tell you and mom I was back, but I couldn't," he sighed before continuing, "I'm sure Beth told you what a different person I am. The son my mom raised is gone. The big brother you once looked up to, and wanted to be so much like," tears were now filling his eyes, "he's gone."

His sister Helen had only seen her brother cry once; when their father died. She began to ease up a little. Helen did not witness the traumatic things he saw at war. She could not begin to fathom the sight of mangled bodies and fellow soldiers he lost that still haunt him in his dreams. He explained everything from his bad dreams to his sense of guilt and worry, and how easily startled he became. "I'm damaged Helen, I'm broken, and I did not want to burden you or mom with all of my problems," Helen's eyes now joined Owen's and were full of tears, "I did not want you to feel the pain and loss of losing the Owen you once knew."

Helen's heart broke for her brother. They had always been there for each other when they were kids, especially after their father died. Their family had a cohesive bond that at one point seemed unbreakable. Hearing that her brother endured such traumatic experiences simply broke her, and knowing that he was dealing with the effects alone made her sad, just as Owen predicted. She began to resent the army, and any need for war, convinced that it destroyed people for the worse.

"Owen, I'm so sorry," she said as she placed her hand on his shoulder, "but no matter how damaged you are, or how different you've become, you're _always_ going to be my brother, whom I _love_ dearly. Just know that I'm always going to be here for you, no matter what. That's what family is for, and I know mom will feel the exact same way. I haven't told her yet, I think she should hear from you directly." Owen nodded as they embraced. He kissed her forehead and watched as she walked out of the conference room, and out of the hospital.

* * *

Cristina practiced three times on Stan. She prepared herself for any possible complications that may arise during surgery. After going over everything for the 100th time, she convinced herself she was set, ready to perform her appendectomy. The patient was wheeled into the OR at 7:45 to be properly draped and put under anesthesia. While this occurred Cristina and Alex continued their reign of trash talk in the scrub room.

"Don't become the new 007 Yang," Alex said with a smirk.

"I'm a rockstar Alex, who performs rockstar surgeries," Cristina said confidently, "I'm not bambi."

"Well see, this isn't heart surgery Yang," Alex said as he entered the OR room.

Before following Alex into the OR room she took one final moment to replay the several appendectomies done on Stan, and her and Meredith's rescue surgery on Sadie. She breathed taking the necessary steps into the OR to receive her gown and gloves. Cristina joined Alex on the opposite side of the operating table.

"Scalpel," Cristina instructed to the scrub nurse. Before placing the blade to the patient's skin she immediately glanced up at the OR gallery. She saw George, Izzie and Meredith who gave her a wink to assure her that she was cheering her on. As she continued her search for Owen's face she saw the usual passing of money, her fellow class placing their bets on when she would mess up. However when there was no sign of Owen slight disappointment entered her mind.

"I'm right here if you need me Cristina," Bailey said with reassurance as she stood afar.

Cristina proceeded. She made the proper two to three inch incision on the abdomen, and located the appendices on the lower right. Before removing it she examined the area around to make certain no additional problems were there. As Cristina began to cut the appendices from the abdomen and colon the viewers in the OR gallery cheered, she felt like a badass. She sewed the hole closed of the colon flawlessly that even impressed Bailey. Cristina had successfully performed an appendectomy, and her superior and fellow class witnessed it all.

Cristina's high came to a sudden halt when she realized Owen was not one of the onlookers in the gallery. She wanted him to be there, even if it was just for one second, which was better than not at all. Cristina did not want Owen to be present to witness her surgical skills, she thought of this as a special moment to share as their first. This was her first solo surgery, and she wanted him to be apart of it, to share that moment with, but he was no where to be found.

Cristina's thoughts were interrupted by Bailey's voice, "Nicely done Yang, the Chief is going to hear about this."

Cristina merely nodded, and exited the OR. She avoided her friends and fellow class as she made her way to the OR board. Her eyes moved rapidly up and down, searching for Owen's name. She thought the only way Owen would miss her surgery is if he was in surgery himself. When Cristina did not find his name on the board, she felt angry towards him. She had got her hopes up; something that did no happen often. She was angry at herself for doing so.

Cristina pulled off her scrub cap, clenched in her tiny fist, and shook her head.

"So how does it feel?" Meredith said sneaking up on her.

"Uh-What?" Cristina said, emerging from her thoughts.

Meredith noticed something was bothering Cristina. "What's wrong?"

Without even trying to hide it she let it out, "He wasn't there. He missed my _very first_ solo-surgery." Cristina's eyes sadden but she quickly readjusted them as Izzie, Alex and George joined them.

"Did you all take notes?" Cristina said as she quickly changed from her sad demeanor.

"It was an appendectomy, nothing ground breaking," Alex said trying to take away from Cristina's victory.

Izzie playfully pushed Alex and directed her attention to Cristina, "Congratulations Cristina, it must feel awesome!" She said in her usual bubbly self.

"Okay that wasn't a free show. I'll accept payment in the form of alcohol as Joe's tonight. So be ready to ante up later. All of you." Cristina said in her typical tone.

Cristina pressed the thought of Owen and her distress to the back of her mind, and continued on with her day.

* * *

Owen pushed the reunion with his sister and the thought of his mother to the back of his mind as he assessed patients in the ER. There were none with any major injuries, none needing surgery. In fact, the ER very well could have managed without him, but he needed something to occupy his mind. He needed to do anything to keep flashes of his sister's sadness entering his mind.

When there were no more patients to overlook he began observing as if he were the Chief of the hospital. Owen was milking his time in the ER. He watched as nurses gave injections, and interns did sutures on arms and legs. When he came to an intern suturing a cut on a woman's abdomen, Cristina slammed into his mind like a ton of bricks.

"Shit!" He said loudly, frightening nearby patients and nurses, and immediately looked at the clock. It read 2:30PM. His mind began to race, wondering where the time had gone.

The emotions from seeing his sister this morning forced him to forget Cristina's solo surgery. He pushed back so much emotion this morning that Cristina and her solo-surgery went along with it. He felt like kicking his own ass. Guilt and distress began to creep up on him again. This was her first solo surgery and he missed it. It wasn't about witnessing her surgical skills; he knew she was more than talented. It was something special to share as their first. Even though he was not to scrub in with her, being in the same vicinity was enough, and he failed to deliver.

He left the ER in a hurry to seek out Cristina.

Owen had no luck in finding Cristina that afternoon. He took for granted the slow activity this morning, because now his pager was going off like crazy. Two gun shot wounds kept him busy until the end of his shift. Upon finishing he immediately went to change to try and meet Cristina in the lobby of the hospital.

He paced back and forth, and shuffled from numerous seats in the lobby. Before he could begin to think of the proper words to make a pleasant apology, Dr. Bailey stopped him.

"She's at Joe's," She said nonchalantly, "her and the rest of the mini surgeons headed over there about an hour ago."

"How…Uh….Um…did…I'm n…" Owen fumbled over his words. He suddenly felt his palms get sweaty. He began to think how on earth Dr. Bailey knew.

"Oh get the surprised look off your face. You should know by now that I know everything that goes on in this hospital. Nothing gets past me." She said with a grin, and walked through the exit.

Owen needed no other cues and quickly jogged across the street to Joe's.

He made his way down the familiar alley way and reached for the door.

He was met with loud rushes of music, and began scanning through the sea of people for Cristina.

When Owen finally spotted her he paused in his tracks.

Once his mind began to process what his eyes were seeing he allowed his manner to change.

He clenched his fists and jaw as jealously began to form in his eyes.


	8. Chapter 8

Cristina wasted no time in collecting and started consuming her drinks a little faster than usual.

Everyone from Meredith, Callie, the interns, even Mark Sloan bought Cristina her favorite vodka tonic.

Each drink she devoured suppressed her anger towards Owen; it drowned him out of her mind. It allowed her to enjoy the fact that she rocked a solo surgery, performed it to the tee. She did not want to spend the entire night fussing over why Owen was a no show. It was pointless, and in her mind there was no excuse. She checked the OR board immediately after, he could have been there, but he chose not to. His excuses or apologies were not going to be heard, she made up her mind.

As the effects of the vodka intensified Cristina became more relaxed and friendly.

She wanted to dance, and with that notion in her mind she grabbed the closest arm near her to an open space in the Bar, "Let's dance."

Mark was momentarily caught off guard; Cristina and he were polar opposites. They would never ask either to dance. However, he too was relaxed and in a feel good mood to even resist.

Cristina released her hold from Mark's arm and began moving her hips to the rhythm of the beat.

"Let's see you shave your groove thang pretty boy," Cristina slurred out with one eye brow raised.

Mark took it as a challenge, and attempted to mimic Cristina's rhythm. The onlookers playfully joked with Mark, whistling as if he were succeeding to dancing to the beat. Cristina let laughter escape her mouth, before moving closer to Mark. Without thinking he mechanically placed his hands on Cristina's hips.

"Who would have known, the robot can dance," Mark said with a grin.

In their minds and the minds of the fellow drunk observers, they were doing nothing more than dancing and having a good time.

However, a sober Owen would suggest otherwise. The jealousy in his eyes could have turned his eyes from ice blue to fiery red. Seeing another man's hands on Cristina's hips, let alone Mark Sloan, drove him insane. It took a great deal of self-control for Owen to not walk up to Mark and drive his fist to his face. He merely sighed, shaking his head as he made his way to order a beer.

Owen sat on a bar stool, drinking his beer and keeping his eyes fixated on Cristina. After settling down his emotions, his jealousy subsided. He knew Cristina would never give Mark Sloan a chance, sober or not. They were drunk and just dancing sloppy.

When the song finished Cristina broke free from Mark's hold. As they were going back to their table to retrieve their drinks Callie stumbled into both of them.

She grabbed both of their wrist, "Ah uh, not so fast." Callie wanted in on the dancing festivities, and Cristina and Mark did nothing more than comply.

Callie and Cristina sandwiched Mark as a rock song played from the juke box.

At this point they were too impaired to care if their movements were in sync with the song. Cristina placed her hands on Mark's shoulder blades, her lower part every so often grazing him from behind. The music strengthened and she shook her head, allowing her hair to move as wild as it looked.

Callie was in front of Mark, his hands now placed on her hips. She was shaking her whole body in amusing ways, but Mark didn't notice because his eyes were glued to her behind. They attempted to "wooo" and yell "yeah" but the words that escaped their mouths sounded like rubbish.

Owen clenched his jaw at the new sight he was seeing. He had to remind himself; once again, she and everyone else were drunk.

Meredith, George, Izzie and Alex laughed and could not help but join in on the so called dancing.

Cristina broke from the sandwich, and was now surrounded by a tame mosh pit with her fellow class and interns.

Another hour had passed and Joe finally broke up the party, calling those who needed one taxis.

Owen had stayed on the bar stool the whole night, transfixed on Cristina, and their current problem. He wanted to apologize for not being there for her solo-surgery. He wanted to tell her about the surprise visit his sister made, and how he needed to take the trip to see his mom soon. Those wants disappeared. He knew that she would not be coherent to any of his apologies.

He knew that if he told her about his sister's visit she would feel sorry him. Pity was the last thing he needed or wanted from Cristina.

"I'm gonna make sure Mark gets to his hotel okay," Callie said with a grin, "are you going to make it home okay?"

"Callie it's just across the street, I'm more than sure I can manage," Cristina said while struggling to put her arms through the sleeves of her jacket. She felt as though someone re-seamed her jacket, putting the sleeves in the wrong place.

Owen came up behind Cristina and took the jacket from her hands. He held it open behind her and guided each arm though. "I'll make sure she gets home okay," he said in a reassuring tone.

Cristina rolled her eyes, and grabbed her bag.

Callie made a face, "Oh you're in the dog house….Now I'm not sure you'll make it home okay."

Owen gave her a crooked smile. As Callie and Mark were making their way towards the exit she turned her head and whispered, "Good luck."

Cristina followed suit and made a wobbly exit from Joe's. Owen was right behind her, ready to catch her if she fell.

"Stop following me!" She yelled back to him, "I can take care of myself."

Owen ignored her and kept close behind her as she made her way to the curb.

Cristina looked back once more and gave him an evil glare. The anger she felt for him earlier was resurfacing, and it showed on her face.

Owen gave her an apologetic look, "Cristina-I…"

She cut him off, "Oh stop, save the puppy dog look for someone else. I saw that you didn't have any surgeries while mine was happening. You could have been there, but you chose not to. I'm sure you had better things to do." He merely sighed, knowing that there were no words that would sooth her mood.

Cristina faltered trying to step from the curb down to the street. If Owen had not instinctively grabbed her, she would be face first on the street. She tried to break free from his grip, but Owen ignored it and lifted her over his shoulders.

He made his way to her apartment and propped her up against the wall. She was only half conscious now. His hands pressed against the front of her jeans, trying to feel for keys in her pockets.

Cristina swatted his hands away. "You're not getting any!" she slurred out.

Owen retracted his hands, "Where are your keys?"

She removed her bag from her shoulder and flung it at Owen. He caught it with ease and rummaged through it in search of keys.

After pushing aside medical journals, a sweater, and an ipod he finally found her keys.

Owen lifted her once again with little effort and headed for her bedroom while kicking the front door shut. He let Cristina's bag fall to the floor before gently laying her on the bed. He removed her boots and hesitated before removing her jeans; afraid that he would get kicked this time.

He spotted a green blanket on a chair and covered her. He went to the kitchen and rummaged through cabinets and drawers until he found some Tylenol. He poured a glass of water and left it, along with the pills on her night stand. She would need it.

Owen stood there for a moment, admiring Cristina as she slept. Her thick black curls blanketed her pillow. He crept on the bed and hovered over her, brushing her curls from her face and repositioning them behind her ear.

He lowered his head, his lips nearly touching her ear and whispered, "I wanted to be there…..I'm so sorry." He pressed his head gently against hers and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

Owen retraced his movements off the bed and left Cristina's apartment.

* * *

Cristina slammed her alarm clock with great force. The rapid beeping only aggravated the pounding in her head. She began to massage her temples and made a face at the great journey it would be to her kitchen to retrieve some Tylenol.

"Ugh!" she groaned as she sluggishly sat up.

Cristina stared through her open bedroom, "Why do you have to be so far away kitchen!?"

Not wanting to make the journey she flopped back on her pillows facing the other night stand.

She did a double take when she saw the glass of water and Tylenol waiting for her.

Cristina instantly thought of Owen, she smiled after swallowing the pills, but quickly removed it and thought he does not get off that easy.

She went to shower wondering how today would unravel with her on his services today.


	9. Chapter 9

Owen sat in his dim lit office, omitted in his thoughts while his finger lingered over the backspace button to the keyboard. The reunion with his sister was heavy in his mind and naturally the aftermath of it; missing Cristina's surgery. Knowing it upset her hurt him. The sight of his sister's distressing face wrenched his heart. He resented that he had become so displaced.

Being with Cristina felt like a healthy start for him. He originally believed that with her by his side his symptoms from war would ultimately settle, however, now, he was not so sure. Even though their fight was minor, his thoughts deepened, thinking of darker scenarios where being broken would get in the way of having a healthy relationship with Cristina. What if she was the wall he would wake up to punching, or the pillow he would strangle in his sleep. It frightened him. With those thoughts swirling in his brain he decided he needed to take a step back. With his sister's visit he saw the emotional hurt he caused, and he did not want to risk hurting Cristina in any way possible.

He breathed deep and finally pressed the backspace button; deleting Cristina's name from his service. He was never one for avoidance but today he felt it was required. At least until he figured out the proper words to explain all this.

Owen shut off the computer and sunk back in his chair. He closed his eyes and began mentally writing a to-do list with tasks he felt would help him in becoming a more complete person.

* * *

Dr. Bailey came around the corner, stopping at nurse's station to hand the resident's their assignments.

"Izzie, George, you're on post-op and pre-ops. Karev you're with Hunt. Cristina clinic and Meredith you're with me."

Cristina's ears perked up, right along with her eye brows, "Umm Dr. Bailey I'm supposed to be with Hunt today."

Bailey shook her head, "Yang, Hunt requested Karev."

Cristina made a face, "Okay fine, but why do I have to have the clinic?"

"Hoops Yang, hoops," she said with a grin, "fair treatment."

Cristina's mouth popped open in slight shock. Her eyes shifted to Meredith giving her a look that said they'll talk about it at lunch, and walked off.

The clinic rarely seen patients with or in serious conditions, it lacked perplexed injuries, which is why Cristina dreaded it so much. It was unchallenging and made her irritable. So the interns were not a least bit surprised when she snapped her fingers ordering them to start assessing the patients. She gave her customary rules to not bug her unless a consult was absolutely necessary or if a patient was coding.

Leaning back on a computer chair, Cristina propped her feet up on the desk, and began thinking of two people; Bailey and Owen.

Cristina was certain that she and Owen's flirting was careful, more than ever at the hospital. Or so she thought. Perhaps Bailey was at Joe's when they left the bar hand in hand. She knew Bailey would not tell the Chief, she had not done so with Burke, so why would she start now. After replaying her and Owen's enticing moments together, Cristina not once remembered seeing Bailey near by. She came to the conclusion that Dr. Bailey simply possessed the divine power of knowing everything.

Her thoughts detached from Bailey, now fixated on Owen. Being removed from his service today clouded her mind. She momentarily thought his savior complex was diminishing. In past events he always sought her out, wanting or needing her to understand his actions, yet here he was avoiding her. She even wore her hair down today as punishment for missing her very first solo-surgery.

Cristina bit her nails. She felt she was missing something, and wondered what was making Owen retreat. Suddenly being mad at him for the no show diminished for good. Something in her gut told her to seek Owen, move past this ostensible fight, and perhaps tell the Chief about their relationship.

When Cristina surfaced from her sea of thoughts she immediately checked the clock and saw it was lunch time. She loved the place with the food, but in this moment she had no desire to eat. The uneasiness in her gut would not allow her. She would work through her lunch.

Meredith came barging into the clinic, tearing Cristina from her thoughts.

Before she could speak to her, Owen followed. He caught sight of her, but quickly turned away, directing his attention to three unoccupied interns.

"I need an extra intern," he said quickly. They all raised their hands in unison.

He pointed to Lexie and she hurried out of the clinic like a giddy school girl. Just as Owen was about following suit Crirstina's voice stopped him.

"Owen-," was all she had a chance to assemble out.

"I'm working," he said walking to the door, "liver laceration can't wait." And he was gone.

Meredith turned to an open mouthed Cristina, "Playing hot and cold again eh?"

Cristina closed her mouth and eyed Meredith, "Shut up."

"Maybe he's trying to keep things professional at work, now that Bailey knows," Meredith tried to say in a comforting tone.

"Yeah, maybe," was all Cristina said, but deep down she felt otherwise.

* * *

Owen took his time in the OR, operating as slow as possible with each patient. He was doing his best to avoid wandering the halls of the hospital. When his surgeries finished and shift ended he changed and slipped on his favorite worn out green jacket. He made his way to an elevator and pressed the button to call it. It arrived and the doors slide open, revealing Cristina.

He hesitated briefly and stepped inside.

Cristina was the first to speak.

"Look I dunno why you took me off your service, but avoiding me isn't solving anything. If it's about the solo-surgery, I'm over it. They'll be plenty of other first to share as a couple." She paused, waiting for Owen to say something, but his only response was his softened eyes, so she continued.

"And Bailey knows about us. Now she's making me jump through hoops. Maybe we should consider telling the Chi-"

Owen interrupted her, "Well she won't have to worry about doing that anymore."

Cristina looked at him puzzled. The uneasiness in her gut that lingered during lunch had returned with vengeance.


	10. Chapter 10

"Excuse me?" A baffled Cristina asked, "Did I miss something?"

Owen pulled the emergency stop button. Now was his time to tell her.

"Look Cristina, I think I need to take a step back from us for awhile."

Cristina's heart rate slightly increased and you could hear it in her voice

"What? All because of our 'fight'? Or because I was dancing with Callie and Sloan? Are you kidding me?"

Owen sighed, "It's deeper than that Cristina... Beth told my sister I was back and she came to confront me the morning of your surgery. The pain I'm causing my family hit me really hard. That's why I wasn't there."

He took a moment to inhale and exhale, while Cristina's heart rate slowed to its regularity. Owen looked at Cristina's face, there it was, pity. Cristina felt sorry for him. She remembered his reaction to seeing Beth, and could just imagine how the session with his sister went. Her facial expression softened, thinking of ways to comfort him.

"I hate that I upset you for not being there," he continued.

"It's okay-"

"No! It's not okay! Just like it wasn't okay when I showed up drunk! It's not okay Cristina!"

She took a step back, folding her arms across her chest and allowed him to continue.

"I promised you a damn near lifetime, and I intend on keeping that promise and fulfilling it until the day I die. In order for me to do that, I need to address my problems head on now. No more waiting. The longer I wait the worse it gets. Even though our recent problems have been small, it's still not okay. That's how it begins, starts off little and with time becomes worse. I do not want that for you, not for us."

Cristina only half understood, "Why do we have to apart? I told you I was here for you."

"Cristina, my problems go a lot deeper and darker than panic attacks. I don't want you caught in the crossfire of those. That's the last thing you need."

Owen moved closer to Cristina, gently grabbing hold of her arms.

"Trust me; it's just as hard to be apart from you. I'm thinking about the long haul Cristina. I know this is going to benefit us for the better. Trust me okay. This treatment is going to payoff."

"What treatment?" Cristina asked curiously.

Owen released his gentle hold, "This morning I scheduled appointments with the hospital's therapist, Dr. Wyatt." Cristina rolled her eyes; remember how she called her a terrible shrink.

"What? Is she not good?" Owen asked nervously.

"Oh no… It's just Meredith used to her…but yeah she's good. If she can heal Meredith then she can do anything."

"Alright… I better release this elevator; otherwise people are going to think we're having sex."

Cristina lifted one eye brow, "That's not a bad idea," she said playfully. Owen laughed.

He released the emergency stop button and placed his other hand on Cristina's cheek, cupping it tenderly.

"It's only 20 sessions, I'm sure we can manage," he said with a crooked smile.

As the elevator doors slid open Owen removed his hand from Cristina's cheek, giving her one final smile that reassured her they would make it. Before he could fully exit Cristina grabbed his arm, bringing their bodies close and pressed her lips against his. He weakened and began kissing her back. He positioned his hands around her head, cupping her face. He tried to convey all he felt for her in that kiss and it worked because Cristina's knees turned to jelly. Their lips tasted sweeter each time they touched, making the kiss more intense. Cristina wanted to melt right along with her heart. And she would have if Owen had not pulled away. He walked off the elevator not once looking back. If he did, they just might have had sex on that elevator.

* * *

Dr. Wyatt felt it would be best to schedule Owen's sessions after his shifts. She did not know the extent of his disorder or how he would react after their sessions. She would be cautious, for now.

Owen leaned against the wall adjacent to Dr. Wyatt's office. The door to enter scared him. He knew the conversations that lay ahead would exasperate him into anxiety. His first attempt to motion towards the door made his chest tighten. He retreated. The second time his palms began to ooze with sweat. He retreated once more. Anxiety wanted to break through his defense, but he breathed deeply, and shook it off. It was the third try that got him to knock and walk through the door. It was the thought of Cristina and his family that gave him the courage. They were his fuel.


	11. Chapter 11

"Dr. Hunt," Dr. Wyatt acknowledged. "Have a seat."

"Thank you, Dr. Wyatt," Owen said as he shook her hand.

He sat down on the gray sofa and began to fidget. It started with twiddling his fingers, and rubbing his sweaty palms on his thighs. The whole time she eye balled him, as if she were examining him like a specimen. It made Owen feel uneasy.

He cleared his throat, "Umm…so when do we start?"

Dr. Wyatt tilted her head, "Whenever you're ready."

Owen breathed deep, "Not really sure where to begin. I pictured you directing the topics."

"Is that how you want to approach this? Okay, let's talk about Iraq."

Hearing the word Iraq made Owen regret saying anything. It sent chills through his body. Muscle tension formed in his arms and chest. The lump that formed in his throat prevented him from speaking. He anticipated their first topic to be something light, like family, but here they were, diving right into the main source that caused his demons. Now here in therapy he was asked to speak about it. Relive it. He made it a rule not to talk about Iraq. And unfortunately tonight was not the night he would break it.

Owen remained in psychological shock for the remainder of his session. Not speaking, and staring off into space.

"Dr. Hunt," Dr. Wyatt said trying to snap Owen out of his hypnotized state.

"Dr. Hunt!" she said more forcefully. He snapped out of his trance and looked at her.

"Time's up." He acknowledged and stood up.

"Dr. Hunt," she said before he reached for the door, "I commend you for taking the steps to seek help. Soldiers are typically very reluctant to come to therapy, seeing it as a sign of weakness."

Her words made him feel a little better for not speaking tonight. At least until she spoke again.

"However, if we continue to have sessions like this one, we are never going to get anywhere. I know it's difficult, but the longer we wait to address this, the worse it's going to get. Keep in mind, we only have 20 sessions, and a lot to cover. If you want to overcome this then we need to confront it head on."

Owen was slightly angered by her words now. Difficult? It was beyond difficult to talk about Iraq. He clenched his first and jaw, shaking his head. However, the avoidance she spoke of was spot on. The longer he delayed to talk, the worse it would affect his ability to function in life. She was right, and he hated it. It made him resent himself more for being so disconnected.

Dr. Wyatt watched the rapid rise and fall of his chest. She pulled a small paper from her folder and wrote a prescription. She got up from her chair and offered it to Owen.

"Here," she said, "it's for anxiety."

Owen snatched it from her and left her office. When he reached the hospital's pharmacy he slammed the paper on the counter, still exasperated. It made the pharmacist jump. She looked at him crazy.

"Are you just going to stare at me or fill my prescription," he breathed out. The pharmacist rolled her eyes and went to fetch his pills.

She returned, slamming them on the counter, "Your pills sir."

Owen scooped them up quickly, "Thank you," he said sarcastically and left the hospital.

When Owen made it home he did not remove any article of clothing, not even his shoes. He simply laid in his bed motionless, looking up at the ceiling, omitting in his thoughts once more. He skeptically thought how he was going to survive another 19 sessions in therapy. Detaching from his thoughts, he reached into the pocket of his jacket and took one of his anti-anxiety pills, and fell asleep.

* * *

Owen broke his first cardinal rule during his second visit with Dr. Wyatt. He spoke of Iraq. He did so in disturbing detail. Every word that escaped his mouth tore the band aids he placed over his emotional wounds. There were moments he found himself shaking, or in tears. He even had to pop an anti-anxiety pill. However, at the end of it he knew this was going to result in a better life, so he continued.

Eight sessions passed and Owen noticed visible changes. Although they were diminutive, they were still improvements. In one of his visits he described one of many nightmares that haunt him in his sleep. He was back in the deserts of Iraq, only the sand that made the desert up wasn't it's usual khaki color, it was crimson red. It was soaked in his fellow unit's blood, and blanketed with detached limbs. The sight always terrified him. In the dream he would frantically try and piece back together his friends, but failed every time. It always ended the same way; with hundreds of missiles targeting him, but before they could reach him he woke up screaming. The night he described it to Dr. Wyatt was when he noticed a change. The nightmare that was waiting to lurk into his mind, ready to traumatize him for the worst did not come.

In another visit he spoke of the flashbacks that were sporadically triggered from specific noises or smells. They consisted of none other than blood shed. He relived moments where he would be standing or working with a fellow soldier one minute, and see them blow to pieces the next. He felt guilty, expressing his confusion as to why the bullets or grenades missed him. Revealing those moments resulted in a decreased sense of guilt. He did not startle so easy, and more often than not those sounds that triggered his flashbacks did not always come. He was taking significant baby steps to improving, and he became eager to finish. Dr. Wyatt was helping him to accept his traumatic experiences as part of his past.

Owen's therapy sessions were spread out, 2 a week. That meant roughly about two months without Crisitna, at least without the way he wanted her. He decided that he would no longer choose who was on his service. Instead he would allow the computer to randomly pick, and if it happened to be Cristina, he would be as professional as possible, with light conversation. However it was easier said than done.

A month had elapsed of no Cristina. The days she was on his service he found it difficult to restrain himself. When their eyes would meet during various surgeries his heart would flutter. There were moments where he wanted to drag her into an on-call room and rip all of her clothes off. However, it was the sentimental thoughts that entered his mind the most. He longed to hold her, or fall asleep on her stomach while she ran her fingers though his hair. Owen managed to resist temptation, until today.

They had just finished performing a complicated surgery and were riding the elevator to speak to the patient's loved ones. Cristina was leaning against the steel wall of the elevator, admiring Owen and his built. She too wanted to jump him at moment's notice. When he could not resist anymore, he closed the gap between them, lifting her from the back of her thighs as she wrapped her legs around his waist. The touch of each other's lips pressed together never felt sweeter. Owen moved from her lips and nestled in her neck, sucking scrumptiously. Cristina wanted him to take her.

"We're almost there, maybe you should pull the emergency butt-," she was cut of by Owen's lips pressing against her's once more. He peeked up and noticed their stop was coming up. He broke up their kiss and gently planted Cristina back on the ground.

"Maybe you should speak to the family alone," he said breathlessly. And they parted ways.

A week later it was Cristina who made a move.

Owen was sitting behind his desk, writing post operative notes on one of his patients. His pen slightly jolted to the sound of his door closing. He placed his pen down and sunk back into his chair as he watched Cristina lock the door.

"What are you doing?"

Cristina ignored his question as she removed her scrub top, and unhooked her bra. The sight of her breast aroused him. He wanted to jump from his chair and devour them in his mouth but he refrained. As she neared closer to his desk she pulled down her pants right along with her panties. Completely naked, she sat on the edge of his desk facing him with her legs parted. The lips of her pussy called his name. At this point Owen surrendered. He stood up removing his shirt, and pulled his pants and briefs down to his ankles. The sight of his erection made Cristina lick her lips. She pushed him back into his chair and straddled him. Owen placed his hands on her hips and as she lowered herself onto him, his grip tightened. Feeling himself insider her drove him insane. He bit his bottom lip to prevent any gasps to escape his mouth. Her movements were slow at first, grinding up and down. Owen's hands traveled from her hips to the middle of her back as he nuzzled his face in her breast. He planted hot kisses on her breasts that made her increase her pace. She kept up the rapid movements until she reached her climax, and Owen followed.

After their adventure in his office, they slowly started spending more time together. It started in the hospital. Owen would greet her with morning coffee, or Cristina would sit with him at lunch. They immensely missed being in each other's company. Gradually they would meet up at Joe's after work, but made it a rule to not venture to either's apartment. However, there were days when they kept their distances. Owen would visibly be bothered by his therapy sessions and rather than try and comfort him Cristina let him be.

* * *

It was late one evening when Owen contemplating calling his mother. He looked at his cell phone that laid on his coffee table. All he had to do was pick it up and dial. It was easier to think it than actually act on it. He inhaled deep, and exhaled slowly as he picked up his cell. He flipped it open and dialed his mother's number. It rang 3 times before someone answered.

"Hello?" a familiar voice said through the phone.


	12. Chapter 12

"Mom….it's me," he said with sadness in his voice.

"Owen!? Are you home? You're calling from a Seattle area code; does this mean you're home?" His mother asked with excitement her voice.

"Yeah mom, I'm home, but-"

She cut him off, "Oh how wonderful!" She was now crying, "I've missed you so much!"

Owen's heart ached as he remained silent.

"I'm so happy you made it home safe." She paused to blow her nose. "Are you calling from a friend's phone? Were you too tired to come home and shacked up with a friend?"

"No mom, I'm at my place. I-"

"Why didn't you call when your planed landed, I would have picked you up myself?" She asked cutting him off once more.

Another lie escaped his mouth, "Uhh—ah-It was late mom, and I didn't want to bother you."

"Oh non-sense, it would have made my night. Now listen here, you stop by this weekend. I'll call up everyone and we'll have a lovely welcome home party." She said cheerfully. "Oh I'm so happy my boy is home."

A communal gathering was not what Owen had in mind. "Mom-," he tried to interrupt.

It failed. His mother was so excited that he was home. She wanted to have the perfect home coming for her son.

"Sweetie, I'm sorry, but if there's going to be homecoming party this weekend I need to get on it. I only have two days. I love you Owen and I can't wait to see you this weekend. We have so much to catch up on." She said smiling through the phone.

Owen knew he could not talk his mom out of her plans so he simply agreed.

"Sounds great mom," he lied, forcing excitement in his voice.

"Okay, so I'll see you this Saturday then. I love you sweetie."

"Love you too mom." And he hung up.

Owen tossed his phone to the side and began to massage his temples. He was frustrated that he did not simply interject and tell his mother he had been home for several months. It tugged at his heart to picture how sad and heartbroken his mother would be once he told her the truth. On top of that she was throwing a party for him. He breathed deep. If his mother hadn't changed then he knew a lot of people would be present. The thought of being in a large social situation made his muscle tension return. His palms began to sweat. If thinking about it was making anxiety arise now, he could just imagine how intense his emotions would run once it was actually happening.

As his thoughts shifted, Cristina entered his mind. He remembered their date at Pioneer Square and the conversation they shared as they watched the ferryboats. Owen tossed around the idea of asking Cristina to join him. Yes and no went back and forth in his mind. There was no doubt in his mind he _wanted_ her to join in on this venture, but was not sure it'd be safe for the future of their relationship. He was uncertain of how he would react once he was in the presence of his mother's house.

Owen got up from his sofa and poured himself a tall glass of water. He swallowed an anti-anxiety pill and chased it with the water. He grabbed the back of his neck thinking how tonight would be a sleepless one. Rather than lay awake in bed he grabbed his jacket and keys and left his apartment. He briefly thought of taking a drive around the city, but thought a voyage on foot would better occupy his mind. Without out a destination entered in his mind he stepped away into the crisp cool night.

Meanwhile Cristina was nestled comfortably in bed as she admired her hand made Harper Avery Award. She was driving herself crazy thinking of the man who made it for her. Owen had that effect on her. Although their sporadic get togethers in the hospital and occasion drink at Joe's was nice, she wanted more. She wanted it to be constant. She had only got a taste of what dates were like with him and she yearned for more. She wanted to rest her head on his chest, or run her fingers through his ginger red hair while they avidly kissed. Cristina briefly paused from her thoughts. She let a small laugh escape her mouth as she placed her award over her heart. It made her blush that she was having these amorous thoughts. It was out of character.

For Cristina was far from the lovey-dovey type. Romanticism was not a page in her book. She often poked fun at couples who always held hands. The thought of constantly whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears made her eyes roll. In her mind dates were a waste of money and scarce clean clothes. She found it amusing at the things lovers say and do. Yet here she was, self-sufficient Cristina, wanting all these things. She was changing. Owen made her want those things, naturally.

Before she could sink further in her thoughts a knock at the door brought her afloat.

She slowly got up from her bed and sluggishly walked to the door. It was Meredith.

"Hey, were you sleeping?" Meredith asked as she let herself in.

Cristina closed the door and took a seat next to her on the sofa. "No, not yet. What's up?"

"Oh…Okay… Callie here?" She asked looking around as if she was about to spill something really juicy.

"No, she's on call tonight. What's gotten into you?"

Meredith blocked Cristina's vision with Derek's mom's engagement ring.

Cristina's eyes grew wide," Ooooh……. Okay well I'm all out of Tequila, but I've got plenty of vodka."

Meredith frowned, "No. I'm not here to freak out. I'm here because I wanted you to be the first to know. And-"

"And?...And what?" Crisitina nervously asked.

"Will you help me plan the wedding?" Meredith blurted out.

Shaking her head, "Oh no! This is your wedding."

"Oh come on Cristina. Please."

Cristina averted her eyes, "No,no, no"

"Come on Cristina, you're my person, I need you for this. I need you to kick my ass down the aisle too. That's also my way of asking if you'll be my maid of honor."

"Why are you deciding these things now? He just proposed to you."

"Well. I agreed to a wedding in two months from now."

Cristina simply glared, "Why do you want to get married so soon?"

Meredith remained silent for a minute, "Because. Because after everything we've been through we're finally at a good place, and it just feels right. If I don't do this now I might not ever get my happy ending. So are you on board or not?"

"Okay, okay! Fine, and I better be able to breathe in my dress!"

Meredith laughed, "Thanks. So come to my house this Saturday and we'll start."

"Ugh, Fine."

"Okay I gotta run. See you at work tomorrow." Cristina nodded and walked Meredith out. She shut the door and began locking it when another knock occurred.

Cristina opened it swiftly, "Mmm Hmmm," sounding a bit annoyed.

"Bad timing? Sorry I'll leave." Owen said as he turned to walk away.

"No!" Cristina yelled, stopping him. "I thought you were Meredith. Come in."

Owen entered and lingered in the living room.

"You want to sit down?"

"No, I just came to ask you something."

"Ah-uh, and it had to be done in person?" Cristina asked curiously.

"Do you remember what you said to me on the night of our date? About my seeing my mom?"

"Yes," she answered.

"Well, I'm supposed to go to my mother's house this Saturday and I was wondering if-"

She cut him off, "Yes. Yes, I'll go with you." It made her happy that he was finally taking steps to make things right with his family.

He looked at her and smiled. "Thank you. It'll be nice to have someone there who really sees me." Cristina smiled back.

Without saying another word he left her apartment. He knew if he would have stayed things would have progressed very quickly to her bedroom.

Once again Cristina locked door but this time no knocks interrupted her voyage to her bed.

She was beginning to fall asleep when something hit her. She was supposed to meet Meredith on Saturday to start planning her wedding.

"Great." She said aloud. She sighed and thought _well she didn't exactly say what time on Saturday, maybe I'll be back in time_. Cristina did not want to disappoint either of them; she would find a way to do both.

To Owen's fears Thursday and Friday flew by with vast speed. It was Saturday morning and he and Cristina were driving in his pick-up truck to see his mom. No words were spoken, silence had fallen over them. They both knew an intense emotional reunion was ahead. They did not want to add fuel to their all ready built up nerves.

As Owen shut off the engine to his truck an unsettling feeling formed in his stomach. He looked confused. There were no signs of a welcome home party. Although he was relieved by this, it was unlike his mother to call anything off. Cristina broke through his thinking and squeezed his hand.

"You can do this," she said with a slight smile.

He nodded and stepped out of his truck. They walked hand in hand up the familiar walkway and rang the door bell.


	13. Chapter 13

When no answer to the door bell came, Owen tried again, this time with a forceful knock.

"I'm out here on the back porch," yelled a familiar voice. That voice made Owen's heart jolt.

He squeezed Cristina's hand and gave her a nervous look that said he was ready to freak out. She squeezed his hand back, and placed her other hand on his chest.

"It's okay. Just breathe. Take a deep breath. You can do this. Just breathe." Cristina said in her best comforting voice.

Her words slightly soothed him, allowing him to continue along side the house. Each step he took became heavier. The sound of the grass crunching made him nervous. As he reached the steps to the back porch his heart rate increased rapidly. It felt as though his heart was going to pound its way out of his chest.

He and Cristina climbed the 3 giant steps revealing his mother.

Owen and his mom shared the same ginger hair and piercing blue eyes. The rest of his features were from his father. She sat on a wooden lawn chair, starring off into the sea of woods that surrounded her house. Owen could tell by the expression on her face something was wrong.

"Mom," he said, breaking through her thoughts.

She looked up and gave him a simple smile, "Owen."

"Mom, this is Cristina, my girlfriend. Cristina this is mom, Lynn."

She merely nodded in acknowledgment, and Cristina did the same with a faint smile.

"So am I early?" Owen asked nervously.

Lynn got up from her chair and approached the railing, "No. I decided not to go through with the party." She turned her head to face her son, "Beth stopped by yesterday afternoon."

Hearing Beth's name infuriated Owen. He could not believe she went and spilled the beans to his own mother. This was something he needed to do himself, and did not understand her logic. He released Cristina's hand and approached the railing of the porch. He griped it tightly with both hands, while shaking his head in frustration.

"Mom-I-wanted to tell you," he said with a broken voice.

She remained silent, but her facial expression spoke volumes to Owen.

Once their eyes met he walked off the porch and disappeared into the woods. He could not bear to see his mother heart broken. The tears that filled her eyes were his fault and he hated himself for it. He felt worthless. He was enraged that he cast such sadness upon his mother. He was supposed to take care of her when his father died, and in this moment he felt as though he failed drastically. He stomped angrily through the familiar woods until he reached an old wooden fort he used to play in as a child.

Seeing Owen walk off into the woods so distraught tripped a newly found savior complex in Cristina. She began walking down the steps when Lynn's voice stopped her.

"No," she said, "I'll go."

Cristina did not argue. She retreated and sat on one of the wooden chairs.

Lynn knew the woods like the back of her hands. She could walk through them blindfolded. She spent years dragging her children out of them when it was time for supper or bed time. So she was not the least bit surprised when she found Owen by his old wooden fort near a small creek.

His hands were buried in his face as he wept in anger.

His mom approached with caution and spoke softly, "Owen, sweetie."

Through his sobs he managed to form some words," Mom-I-I-I'm so sorry. I-wan-"

"Shh," she said with gentleness in her voice. She sat beside him and took his hand in hers.

"I know," she began," I know what your going through." She took a deep breath and continued.

"Each time your father would return from war, he came back a different person. The first few times it was tough, and it broke my heart to see the man I married so many years ago had disappeared, but I never appreciated that he always came back," she started to sob, "Even though he lost himself at war he always came back. And the day he didn't I wished and prayed for that stranger to walk through those doors. Because displaced or not, deep down he was my husband whom I never stopped loving." She cleared her throat, now holding her sons face in her hands, "So Owen, no matter how different or displaced you've become, you're my son and I love you no matter what. Don't stop coming home okay?"

His eyes swelled up with more tears than ever. He wrapped his arms and his mother and they both began to cry hysterically. Through each sob Owen kept saying how sorry he was and that he loved her. He profusely apologized for disappointing her. After their emotional moment in the woods Owen felt the weight on his shoulders lighten. It wasn't completely removed, but he knew with time it would eventually dissipate.

A few hours passed and they finally emerged from the woods. The sight on the back porch made them stop in their tracks and burst out laughing.

Cristina was lying on the floor, trying shield herself as she was being licked to death by two chocolate labs.

"I see you met Duke and Charlie," Owen said laughing.

"Help-me,"

"Charlie, Duke!" Owen said forcefully. Their ears perked up at the sound of his voice. They both jetted from the porch and jumped at him with excitement. It had been ages since they seen him.

Owen playfully tackled each of them to the ground. Then let them chase him around the back yard.

As Owen became familiar with his dogs again, Lynn approached Cristina with a great smile. She helped her up and dusted off her coat.

"Sorry about that, they just love giving out kisses. If you wanna wash up there's a bathroom just inside, down the hall to the right."

"Thank you," said Cristina, and she made her way inside his mom's house.

When Cristina finished washing up her face she joined Owen and his mother on the kitchen table. A freshly brewed cup of coffee was waiting for her.

Owen and his mother spent the entire morning chit-chatting, which lasted until late afternoon. It felt like the good old days with his mother. He missed those days, and wanted more of these days to come. Cristina mostly listened, intrigued by the stories, and only spoke when the question of how they met arose. She thought his mother was great.

When it was time to leave Lynn gave Cristina a hug and told her what a pleasure it was to meet her. Owen embraced his mother for a long time, and when they finally pulled apart he promised he would come back soon. She nodded as she gently caressed her son's cheek.

The ride back home was quiet. No words needed to be spoken. Cristina and Owen were aware of the great progress that had been made today. They simply sat in silence, hands clasps together with small smiles spread across their faces. They could both feel that being a healthy couple was on the horizon.

Owen dropped Cristina off at Meredith's house and both agreed to meet up for dinner at his apartment tomorrow. Even though he wasn't quite done with therapy, he felt he was doing so well he deserved a small reward. They kissed tenderly and Owen watched as Cristina exited his truck.

As she walked up to Meredith's house she thought of something that never entered her mind about a man. Marriage. She thought and smiled of day when she would be planning her wedding day with Owen. She glanced back at him giving him a loving smile and walked through the door.


	14. Chapter 14

Dinner at Owen's apartment was relaxing. They ate Chinese food on the floor of his living room. It was Cristina's favorite. She could eat it every day, and Owen made a mental note of it. The conversation was simple. Cristina talked about how indecisive Meredith was about planning her wedding, where to have it and how it gave her a headache. Owen just smiled as she went on rambling about everything and anything. The sound of her voice soothed and relaxed him. Being within her presence gave him such peace. She even surprised him by asking him to be her date to Meredith's wedding. To her delight he gladly obliged. When their bellies could hold no more, they collapsed in each others arms, cuddling on his sofa. They laid there for hours, enjoying the peace and serenity that cast over them. In that moment they shared the same thought; they could do this forever. When the time came for Cristina to leave she struggled at the elevator. They rode it at least four times before their lips finally parted ways, and Cristina finally left. This was one of many nights neither could wait to have again.

As Owen completed more therapy session his improvements were remarkable. His nightmares had retreated; sleeping a full 6 to 8 hours occurred with ease. Every night Owen would scan each item in his house and when morning came he would investigate for any signs of displaced items. He did this for weeks, and when everything would still be in its proper place he knew his dangerous sleep walking had become extinct. Anti-anxiety pills were no longer needed. The smells and sounds that typically set off flashbacks no longer had the same effect. They simply just became another smell and sound in the world, nothing particular. The social part of his life even enhanced. He and Derek shared morning chats, and occasionally met up for drinks after work at Joe's. They even ventured out and went fly fishing. Owen soon developed a small friendship with Callie. They shared the same passion for old cars, and discussed them anytime they were around each other. In his eyes she was one of the guys. He and Cristina started to hold karaoke nights at his apartment, inviting Derek, Meredith, Callie and whomever guest she chose to bring. Owen was living again. Functioning in life never felt easier or greater.

Once Owen finished therapy he and Cristina wasted no time in having one hell of a reunion. She started to spend the night at his place often. Each time she would bring more and more clothes so she wouldn't have to make so many trips back to her apartment. It was almost as if they were living together. Owen did not mind at all. They both loved falling asleep in each others arms, and waking up next to each other. Cristina staying at Owen's became customary. When they weren't at the hospital they were out and about in town. They did everything from miniature golfing, go-kart racing, arcades, and bowling, all of which Cristina was super competitive at. At times they would take trips to see his mother, barbecue, or spend the night. Cristina was making her way into the hearts of his family. Even his niece and nephews took fondness to her. They were going through the motions of a happy couple, this time they were beginning their lifetime healthy and safe.

The day of Meredith and Derek's wedding came quickly. It took place on Derek's land, overlooking the beautiful city of Seattle. Meredith remembered what a big hit her house of candles was and decided to have one built resembling a church. The wedding started as the sun was setting, to work with the whole candle effect. Cristina was the made of honor and fellow bridesmaid Izzie took a place beside her. On Derek's side stood Mark and Owen. The ladies wore aubergine strapless dresses, that snug to their bodies tightly, but not so much where they could not breathe. Meredith kept her word. The men wore traditional penguin suits, and looked very handsome. Derek was a nervous wreck, and could not take enough deep breaths as he saw Meredith walking down the candle lit aisle. The Chief gave Meredith away, and she and Derek both recited their own vows. The guest included Callie, George, Alex, Adelle, Bailey, Tucker, Lexie, and Sadie. It was small, nothing big. The whole time Cristina and Owen's eyes never left each other. During the reception they danced the night away. They were in no mood for trout, which what was being served at the wedding. When it was all said and done they left to Owen's apartment. They both fell asleep dreaming of their own wedding day.

A week after Meredith and Derek's wedding, Owen contemplated asking Cristina to officially move in with him. It was a Thursday night, and he had just popped one of his favorite TV shows in the DVD player.

"So what are we watching tonight?" Cristina asked as she laid down on the sofa.

"It's this TV show called Journeyman, it only did one season but it was amazing." He said as laid beside her.

Cristina made a face, "Journeyman? That sounds like it has geek written all over it."

"Hey!" he said tickling her, "you watch boring surgeries to unwind, so who's the geek now."

"Okay, Okay! I'll watch it." she said through her loud laughter. Owen stopped tickling her to death as the first episode was beginning.

"Hey this guy Kevin McKidd is really hot. I think I might like this show after all," she said with a grin on her face.

"Okay maybe we shouldn't watch this," he said as he began tickling her sides once more. Her mouth released loud giggles that Owen loved hearing. When he stopped he finally summoned the courage to ask.

"So what do you think about bring the rest of your stuff over to my place, and make it our place?"

She looked him in his eyes and smiled, "It's about time you asked."

The next day they were both hauling boxes from her apartment to his. When they finally finished unpacking everything Cristina collapsed onto the sofa.

"No more unpacking. No more moving. This is it."

"Hold on there's one more," Owen said.

Cristina waved her hand, "You do it, I'm exhausted."

"Oh come, don't you want to open the final box, making our apartment complete."

She sighed and walked over to the kitchen counter. It was a medium sized box that looked unrecognizable to her.

"You sure this is mine?"

"Yes, now open it," Owen demanded.

She took the box cutter and sliced it open. It was filled with loads of shredded newspaper.

"I don't remember packing this," Cristina said as she rummaged through it. When her hands finally touched base with an object, she slightly froze. She became a tad nervous. She hesitated before pulling it out. It was a small black velvet box. The sight of it made Cristina's eyes fill with tears.

"No, I packed this one." Owen said as he retrieved the box from her hands and opened it for her.

Inside it was placed a simple yet beautiful single solitaire princess cut diamond ring. It was only 1 and ½ carat, and Cristina thought it was perfect. Not too big and not too small. As a matter of fact she did not care about the size at all. She only cared about the person who was giving it to her.

"So how does a nice long engagement sound to you?" he asked nervously.

Tears finally fell from her eyes. There was no hesitation, nothing to consider, she knew this was the right thing to do. She knew Owen was the one.

"It sounds great."

Owen did not need to hear another word. He breathed a sigh of relief and quickly removed the ring from its box and placed it on the appropriate finger.

From that day on Cristina wore her ring proudly, and even more when a wedding band followed.

* * *

_**a/n: Okay that's it folks. Sorry if it was short, maybe it's due to my limited writing ability =/ I realize my writing was hardly up to par when compared to the phenomenal writing of others on this website, but I just thought I would try. I know the concept of my story has been done already but I just wanted to do my version of it. Thanks to all those who read and enjoyed it and a special thank you to those who reviewed it, you all are awesome. Maybe I'll get the courage to write something again soon. Bye. :)**_


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